Exciting Reads for 2009

2009 will be here before you know it. I am looking forward to next year for many reasons...especially for books coming out that are on my "To Read" list. I wanted to let you know about some of my favorites that are heading to your local book stores in 2009.

WINGS by Aprilynne Pike

Release date: May 5, 2009

published by Harper Collins Teen

I first met Aprilynne at last years Whitney Awards (http://www.whitneyawards.com/) She was sitting at our table, where we the women of LDS Womens Book Review were also sitting. As we talked she told us about her first book that she was writing and I became hooked on the ideas behind WINGS.

WINGS is a story about an ordinary girl who discovers she is a faerie and is sent to guard the gateway to Avalon in the mortal world. When she is thrust into the midst of a centuries old battle between faeries and trolls, she's torn between a mortal and a faerie love, as well as her loyalties to both worlds.

This book is right up my alley...my fantasy alley. (Those of you that listen to LDS Womens Book Review podcasts know that fantasy is my favorite genre) I am so excited to get my hands on a copy of this book. I have been enjoying getting to know Aprilynne from reading her blog (which you can link to from my blog; it is called "Apparently!") She is this very intelligent woman who is full of spice, and has an absolute love for writing and reading. It really shows when she is talking about her upcoming book which is the first in a series of books. She wrote this first book in three months! That amazes me!!

Here is a direct quote from Aprilynne's blog where she talked about how she wrote Wings and the sequel:

"When I wrote WINGS, I did write it in a flurry . . . actually, I wrote the sequel in a bit of a flurry too. Three months of long days seems to work well for me. I found a story I was passionate about (that's the ingredient that NO book should be without"

It is writers like this that truly inspire me. I will be doing a more in-depth interview with Aprilynne once I have read WINGS. The exciting thing for me is that I am on the list to receive an ARC (an advanced readers copy) of WINGS so I will be reading this book within the month...I hope! My 10 year daughter has already threatened to steal my copy from me because she wants to also read it. Aprilynne Pike is someone whose name you will be hearing a lot of in the future, just like Stephenie Meyer and Shannon Hale. I am glad that I was able to meet her at the beginning of her career while I can enjoy seeing her take this thrilling ride as a first time published author.

Speaking of Shannon Hale....she has been writing the fourth book in the Books of Bayern series. The fourth book is called, "Forest Born". I know many of you are familiar with this series; remember, #1..Goose Girl #2 Enna Burning #3 River Secrets. The tentative date for the release of this book is October 2009...a whole year to wait! On Shannon Hale's website she had the covers (which are new) of the first three books in paperback. It really is a lovely cover and should attract new readers to these stories.

An interesting thing concerning Shannon Hale is that the next book that she has written, coming out before October, is not a "teen" book, but one for adults called "The Actor and the Housewife". It is scheduled for a May 2009 release date. All of my friends know that one of my favorite Shannon Hale Books is "Austenland", which also is geared more towards the adult reader. There has been some controversy about this new book about the friendship that develops between a male actor and a typical housewife. As always, I don't listen to what others say and I like to judge things for myself. I can't wait to read this new book and after I do, I will give you more details about whether there is something there to garner the title of "controversial".

Congratulations also need to go to Shannon for her novel, "Book of a Thousand Days"...which I loved... it won the Utah Book Award for Young Peoples Literature. This is another book, if you haven't read it yet...you must! I can assure you that you will not be disappointed. It showcases a humble heroine, Dashti, and mixes in drama and romance. The story is written in a journal writing format which I found intriguing.

Well...that is all for now. I will be posting more about new 2009 releases in upcoming blogs. Some of the authors I will be spotlighting will be Jessica Day George, Brandon Mull, James Dashner and many more.